EATING RIGHT FRONT WHEEL BEARINGS

[Doug Brown]

My 1990 Festiva is eating front right wheel bearings - usually the outside one. This is like in 300-400 miles. This is the third time in less than 1,000 miles.

The car has all new shocks, rims, tires, front axles, seals and wheel bearings. There is no vibration damper on the right front axle.

I have not installed any of these items - my local mechanic has done the work. He use to own a Festiva.

Left side has not failed - only the right side outer bearing.

Suggestions as to what to look for? Could it be because the vibration damper is missing? Not enough foot-pounds on the axle nut?

Any and all help appreciated!!!

[FB71]

sounds like the bearing shim is missing. There's a select-fit shim that goes between the inner and outer bearings. If its the wrong size, or left out, the bearings will only last a few hundred miles.

[Festivame]

Missing shim is the most likely as already stated. Did the same mechanic rebuild both the drivers and passengers sides and only one is failing? If so he must be aware of the shim and is putting back in I would assume.

I thought the side I rebuilt was going bad and making noise after only about 1000 miles. Turned out to be a bad tire making the play in the driver side inner tie rod making noise. Replaced the inner tie rods and tire and no noise now.

Festivame

[FestYboy]

the other not so obvious option is a worn hub face (the area that touches the outer race).

[WmWatt]

Take a good look at the partially devoured bearings to see where they are being attacked. That should give you some idea of how they are being eaten, head first, feet first, or sort of nibbling all around the inside or outside.

[Doug Brown]

OK, thanks everyone! I'll have him get it apart and see what everything looks like.

The last one that failed made some noise for a few miles, then went CRACK!, and pretty much was in pieces by the time I got home (10-miles). The current one is in the noise stage - so I have stopped driving her so she doesn't have another go to pieces event.

Even with the problem, I really like the car!

[nitrofarm]

If he installed the "First one" that went "Crack"! Then installed the current one that is the "Noise Stage",I would not be taking my car back to him. The fact that he "owned" a Festy is meaningless. After the first bearing failed prematurely,that should have sent him a "Red Flare". If your "Pre load" spacer is missing & he didnt catch that TWICE. You dont want him doing spacer setup on your car. There are lots of members in NC that have swapped out their stock festy knuckles for Aspire ones. Get one and have a mechanic install the "New Used" piece and be done with this fella.I may sound harsh but its your money & time that he's wasting.

[Doug Brown]

Hi Nitrofarm - I reached the same conclusion. I'm trying to get in touch with member "the pizzaman" who has hubs fully rebuilt on an exchange basis.

My mechanic thought it might have been a bad bearing - which I thought sounded reasonable, but when the current set started to go I knew something else was wrong.

Sort of in the mechanics defense, the previous owner of the car had replaced the front right halfshaft and I suspect the bearings - and probably left out the pre-load spacer. My guy is mostly a remove and replace type mechanic who has done good work on the rest of the car, so I can sort of understand missing the spacer (especially if the spacer wasn't there in the first place).

Thanks for the input - always nice to have someone back up what everyone was saying and what I was thinking!

[Bert]

Hi Nitrofarm - I reached the same conclusion. I'm trying to get in touch with member "the pizzaman" who has hubs fully rebuilt on an exchange basis.

My mechanic thought it might have been a bad bearing - which I thought sounded reasonable, but when the current set started to go I knew something else was wrong.

Sort of in the mechanics defense, the previous owner of the car had replaced the front right halfshaft and I suspect the bearings - and probably left out the pre-load spacer. My guy is mostly a remove and replace type mechanic who has done good work on the rest of the car, so I can sort of understand missing the spacer (especially if the spacer wasn't there in the first place).

Thanks for the input - always nice to have someone back up what everyone was saying and what I was thinking!

You've done a pretty good self-diagnosis on this and had some expert outside advice as well. Leaving out the pre-load spacer is an innocent mistake if it was not in there in the first place.

[nitrofarm]

Ok I hear ya on the "It wasn't there thing",buuuuuuuuut when the axle nut got tightened down you probably could barely spin the tire by hand.drool Anyway sounds he has it resolved and thats all that matters. :thumbs_up:

[WmWatt]

You can see the spacer in these photos of a front wheel rebuild http://www.photobucket.com/Festiva-frontwheel